


A Lesson Learned

by junko



Series: Senbonzakura's Song [45]
Category: Bleach
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-15
Updated: 2014-12-15
Packaged: 2018-03-01 15:34:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2778395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/junko/pseuds/junko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Byakuya quickly learns that Captain Unohana is a forced to be reckoned with.  Meanwhile, Renji gets mail from Urahara Shoten.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Lesson Learned

Seeing Captain Unohana barreling towards him with a determined look in her eye made Byakuya unconsciously take a step back and drop his hand to Senbonzakura. With more authority than he felt, Byakuya asked, “Can you brief me on the situation, Captain Unohana? Is Renji all right?”

Something about her gaze and manner instantly softened. When she stopped in front of Byakuya, at the foot of the stairs to the sento, she no longer seemed larger than life. “He is,” she assured him seriously, but her eyes twinkled as she added, “However, if Lieutenant Abarai still has a special friend, I would suggest that person give him extra doses of TLC tonight. He may need it for a while.”

Byakuya frowned feeling he should understand this mysterious medicine better than he did. Finally, he had to ask: “TLC?”

“Tender Loving Care,” she explained with an indulgent smile. 

“Ah, yes, of course.” Byakuya stifled the urge to blush by turning the conversation back to a more business-like discussion. “Is it known what triggered Renji’s post-traumatic stress?”

Touching Byakuya’s sleeve lightly, Unohana said, “Can you walk with me, Captain Kuchiki?”

Byakuya only hesitated at the idea of leaving Renji. Was he really all right on his own?

Unohana must have read Byakuya’s thoughts in his gaze, because she said, “As Lieutenant Abarai was quite capable of returning to duty, I sent him on his way already.”

“But, I didn’t see him leave,” Byakuya noted. She began walking and so Byakuya followed. Gawkers lined the street. Adults pretended their steps suddenly needed sweeping or shop shutters dusted. Some children just stood on sidewalk or perched on rooftops, staring openly at the Fourth Division shinigami blocking the sento’s entrance. “And your guard has not yet dispersed.”

“Yes,” she said, her voice low, mindful of the crowd’s attention. “I sent Lieutenant Abarai out the back.”

Suddenly, Byakuya felt a creeping sense of dread. “Captain Unohana? I get the feeling that I’m missing something quite critical. What aren’t you telling me?”

They had moved some distance away from the sento, back in the direction of the Sixth Division’s main gate. There was a fair amount of foot traffic for a typical afternoon, near the lunch hour, but the people here were engaged in their own business, uninterested in the passing of two captains. 

“I regret to inform you that a guest at your household, Lord Isoroku Takenaka, has been arrested on the charge of attempted sexual assault of an officer of the Gotei,” Unohana said plainly.

“Sexual… of an officer...? Surely, you’re not suggesting that Isoroku accosted Renji?” Then the rest of what she said finally hit Byakuya, “Wait, Lord Isoroku is under military arrest?” 

Unohana’s lips thinned and her gaze narrowed. “I understand that as a representative of the noble class you’ll likely file a protest on behalf of your… peer, but I will not be moved in this matter,” she said simply. “It is very rare these days that I invoke my authority as a captain, but Lieutenant Abarai is a soldier in good standing the Gotei and I won’t allow any officer of the Court Guard to be manipulated or abused because of their perceived social standing. Should this go to a civil court that is precisely what would happen. And you know it.”

Byakuya’s mouth opened and closed several times. He felt very sideswiped and confused. There was a lot about this situation that Byakuya didn’t know or understand, but one thing was clear—Unohana’s voice resounded with hurt and pride on Renji’s behalf. 

Only a fool would argue with that. 

Besides, if Isoroku had hurt Renji, Byakuya would kill him.

Byakuya nodded. “You have the lead, Captain Unohana. I relinquish my jurisdiction and authority in this matter. Do as you feel fit. I will not stand in your way.” After a moment, Byakuya added quietly and because her gaze seemed to require it, “I stand with Renji.”

Unohana treated Byakuya to a beatific smile. She patted his arm. Sounding like a grandmother, she said, “You are a good man after all, Captain Kuchiki.”

As she walked away from him, Byakuya was left with one thought:

_After all?_

#

Renji felt stupid about all the fuss, but he was just as happy to accept Nanako’s offer to let him switch shifts with her. She’d take the rest of his afternoon, if he pulled a double tomorrow morning. She was getting the better deal, but Renji didn’t mind. “Yeah,” he said to her, “I guess. But what am I supposed to do with myself all afternoon?”

She gave him a little shrug. “You’ve got that birthday stuff,” she suggested. “Or, you know, you could take a nap. If you don’t mind me saying, sir, you look knackered.”

He wanted to protest that he was completely unfazed by this whole stupid thing and that everyone was making far too much of the whole affair, but the truth was, he was feeling it around the edges—jittery and exhausted at the same time, like he was coming down from a fight. He let out a long breath, “Okay. I guess I could take a kip. I can’t remember the last time I just loafed around for a day. Well, we had a few days like that in the Human World, but damn if that doesn’t feel like a lifetime ago.”

“Oh! That reminds me,” Nanako said, rummaging around behind her desk. “Urahara Shoten sent you a care package. Apparently, you forgot some things?”

The cardboard box she placed on her desk was tied in string. It had several shrine omamori stuck on it like postage stamps. In careful printing that Renji suspected was Tessai’s was an address that said, “Abarai Renji, Lieutenant, Sixth Division, Gotei 13, Seireitei, Soul Society, Land of the Dead.” All over the sides was childish scrawl reading “Mr. Freeloader’s Stinky Socks” and “WARNING: May be toxic!” and a few other random cartoonish pictures of rude things happening to pineapples, clearly Jinta’s work. 

It was, however, a surprisingly big box of socks. 

“It arrived late last night, at the end of my shift,” Nanako said apologetically. “But, I’m sorry to say it got forgotten about with everything that was happening at the gate with Captain Kyōraku.”

Gods, was that only last night?

Yeah, maybe Renji could use a nap. “Don’t worry about it,” he said. Renji went to lift it, but nearly dropped it; it was so heavy. “Whoa, this ain’t just socks.”

Looking like an excited schoolgirl, Nanako clasped her hands and nodded. “If they sent souvenirs or candy, will you share, Lieutenant?”

Hefting the box to get a better grip, Renji laughed. “I don’t know that you’re going to want anything that comes from Urahara Shoten.” But looking at her face, Renji had a very strong flashback to the way Rukia had admonished him about hoarding candy when they first met. “But, yeah, I’ll share. If there’s anything good, I’ll share. I promise.”

Once back in his quarters, Renji unpacked the box. 

The string came open easily. Lifting the flaps, Renji thought at first it really was all socks. Then, he realized the big white, fluffy thing was something else, some kind of… stuffed animal? Pulling it out revealed red striped tiger legs, a monkey’s face with a red fringe, and a sequined lamé tail ending in a snake’s head. 

Oh.

A nue.

It didn’t look exactly like Zabimaru, but then, given the blue and white Quincy cross collar around the chimera’s neck, that was probably because the person who made it had never seen Zabimaru’s manifestation. 

Attached to one of the paws was a note:

 

> Abarai-kun:
> 
> I did my best with Lady Yoruichi’s description and “drawing.” I have to say that her art might actually be worse than Ms. Rukia’s. Ms. Rukia at least finishes things. Lady Yoruichi gets bored halfway through and doodles cats and hats and bumblebees. I would have asked Ichigo, but he’s still in a coma.
> 
> Uryuu Ishida

 

It was weirdly… touching.

Renji set that aside in order to inspect the rest of the contents. There were three tabi—one pair and a single—a pair of hakama, and a shitagi, definitely his by the size. The rest of the package was filled with all sorts of goodies: a jar of Tessai’s best pickles with a homemade label that said ‘Not Alice,’ a pink Hello Kitty rice steamer with a note that said ‘so you don’t have to mooch,’ an iPod loaded up with music and super-sweet headphones like the one’s he’d admired that Ichigo had, and, of course, a whole lot of candy, which they seemed to have used instead of packing peanuts. At the very bottom was a letter—actually it appeared to be a Halloween card. Renji puzzled over the English which he couldn’t read, but thought it made some joke about ghosts or reapers, and then read:

 

> Lieutenant Abarai:
> 
> Tessai discovered a few of your things in the laundry and so we thought to put together a little ‘hope you’re well’ package. Actually, my family seems to have gone a bit overboard, but when Mr. Ishida said he had a project he’d been working on as president of the sewing club for you… well, you see the results. 
> 
> I have also been admonished to tell you you’re welcome back any time. Apparently, my family doesn’t trust me to conceal my fondest hope that you never darken my doorstep again.
> 
> Love and kisses!  
>  Urahara Kisuke
> 
> P.S. If you get a chance, please tell Aizen “I told you so” from me. If you do that, I will consider getting rid of your tally of back rent owed.
> 
> P.P.S. I might actually regret agreeing to the condom thing particularly with you heading into battle so soon after. I do hope it’s wearing off.
> 
> P.P.P.S. It’s admirable that Ms. Kuchiki cares so much for her friend, but do you think it’s healthy for her to watch over him EVERY night? It may be making her overly sad. On the flipside, I’ve sold more ghost Kleenex than ever before! Time to re-order!

 

Renji re-read the note a couple of times and decided three things: 1) Kisuke Urahara was one seriously weird dude, 2) there was no way in Hell was he ever visiting Aizen just to taunt him (though it was surprisingly tempting), and 3) he needed to go check on Rukia.

But, Rukia would have to wait until he could hold his eyes open for more than three seconds. Setting the box next to his tansu, Renji grabbed the plushie nue, and, after taking Zabimaru from his obi, snuggled up with the zanpakutō, the nue, and the stuffed tiger Byakuya had won him at the amusement park. 

So much soft and comfort was just what he needed. Renji was out in a second.

#

“O-jama shimasu,” Byakuya said as he slid open the door to Renji’s quarters. 

Byakuya knew Renji was inside because he’d seen his sandals outside on the mat, but he hadn’t expected to find him curled up on his cot. His face was deeply buried in between two stuffed animals. All that was visible was his bright red cockscomb. Strong arms wrapped around the toys, crushing them in a fierce hug. Byakuya thought he saw the distinctive crimson ribbons of Zabimaru in the pile as well.

Renji didn’t even stir at the intrusion: not a single snort or a mutter or any sign of awareness of Byakuya’s presence.

While he had been growing less hyper-vigilant since they started sharing a bed, this non-reaction was so unlike Renji that Byakuya felt it was a sign of the seriousness of the situation. For Renji to sleep so deeply meant he was deeply injured on some level, Byakuya was sure of it. 

Quietly, he closed the door on the worrying but peaceful scene. There was something far more useful he could do for Renji right now than watch him sleep. 

Turning, Byakuya set out to determine where they were holding Isoroku and throttle him.

#

Even though Lieutenant Isane seemed less certain, Captain Unohana was far more accommodating. “Of course you can speak to him, Captain Kuchiki,” she smiled. “In point of fact, he’s been shouting for you from the moment we brought him here. Perhaps you can convince him to keep his voice down? We are a hospital unit, after all.”

Byakuya nodded, “I will do my best, Captain.”

The gangly Lieutenant Isane led Byakuya to their guardhouse. The guardhouse was part of the Fourth Division’s triage infirmary. It seemed to have been designed to treat the criminally dangerous who were in need of emergency medical attention. The barred cells that lined the far wall were hidden from view with the typical medical pull curtain. At the moment, the triage was serving civilian urgent care needs. It was busy enough that the loud sobs and shouts for justice, coming from behind the furthest curtain, were jarring.

And embarrassing. Could Isoroku not at least comport himself with the dignity befitting a noble? Rukia had behaved like a Kuchiki.

Isane pulled aside the curtain to reveal a sorry sight: Isoroku in manacles and a simple yukata stamped with the Kuchiki sento logo. His pink hair hung limply in front of his face, still dripping; his dark skin sallow with fear. Seeing Byakuya, he leaped up from the medical cot he’d been sitting on and ran to the bars. Pushing his face up between the slats, he gripped the bars with his manacled hands. “Oh thank fate, Byakuya! Tell them to let me go!”

Byakuya stared at his ex-lover impassively. “Why should I do that?”

Isoroku took a startled step back. “Because… Isn’t it obvious? I’m a nobleman. I don’t belong here, among these… people. I need to be judged by my peers.”

“Indeed? Those are your reasons?” Arching an eyebrow, Byakuya said, “Not, I notice, because you claim innocence. They tell me you accosted my Renji. Are you saying you don’t deny it?”

“Accost? Assault? Yes, yes, I’ve been hearing these terms and of course they’re preposterous. I did nothing of the sort,” Isoroku said, straightening as though trying to gain some respectability, despite the state of him. “Your man bruised me. I’m the injured party here, not that brute.”

Byakuya glanced over at where Isane stood. The gray-haired lieutenant had moved some distance off, to afford them privacy, but close enough to watch over the proceedings. Seeing the question in his eyes, she said, “The injuries the lord sustained were, in our opinion, consistent with self-defense. Lieutenant Abarai himself confirmed he unintentionally used excessive force when his post-traumatic stress triggered.”

“Self-defense,” Isoroku scoffed. “That’s ridiculous. I’m a playwright and an actor. He’s a trained soldier.”

“You should be grateful to Renji’s training,” Byakuya said coolly. “It’s the only reason you’re not dead.”

Isoroku blinked, looking suddenly very lost and afraid. “You scare me when you talk like that, Bya-chan. Please. This farce has gone on long enough, don’t you think? So I played around a little bit with your man. He’s the one who had a psychotic break! That’s hardly my fault. Let’s just call this whole thing a misunderstanding and be done with it.”

“Played around?” Byakuya repeated, his gut twisting in a knot as his hands ached to ball into tight, angry fists. “What exactly did you do?”

Isoroku gave Byakuya another desperate look. “Don’t be like that, Byakuya. Jealousy doesn’t suit you.” Before Byakuya could react, Isoroku continued, “You need to relax about this. Everything was just a bit fun until his ‘war injury’ got in the way. Now everyone’s treating this like some kind of crime.” He looked miserably at the manacles. “This mistreatment is so unnecessary. Get me out of this, Byakuya.”

“Even if I wanted to, there’s nothing I can do for you,” Byakuya said in lieu of trying to deal with any of the casual... disregard Isoroku spouted. 

“What?” There was a tinge of real fear in Isoroku’s voice now. “Aren’t you a captain? Aren’t you the Kuchiki? Don’t you have authority over what happens at your estate?”

“Military personnel were involved,” Byakuya explained. “Captain Unohana has exercised her right to make this a matter for the Gotei.”

“I’m not an officer,” Isoroku protested, starting to pace around the clean, white cell. “I can’t be tried by the military.”

“Actually, you’ll find you can,” Byakuya said. “Assault of an officer is a serious crime both inside and outside of the Seireitei. How else could we maintain order in the Rukongai?”

“You compare this silliness to an attack on a patrol?” Isoroku scoffed. “Now I know you’re just trying to scare me. It’s not funny, Bya-chan. You’ve punished me enough for this. I’m sorry; I’ll keep my hands off your boy. There, I apologized, even though it should be the other way around. Now let me out.”

Byakuya stared at his old lover, wondering what he had ever found attractive about this man. To think, his family approved so much more of Isoroku than Renji. Isoroku had the right breeding; he had the right… attitude.

Worse, listening to this stomach-turning drivel, Byakuya realized that Unohana was correct in her assumptions. His peers would find everything Isoroku said to be absolutely reasonable. What was the harm? It was a noble’s right to take what they wanted from those below them. Really, it was Renji who should apologize for daring to lay hands on anyone so far above him. 

It made Byakuya sick to know that he, himself, was the same not so long ago. And that even now, he could see the twisted logic in it all.

Byakuya’s fist clenched. “You’re a fool, Isoroku Takenaka. You forced what could have been given freely. Renji and I discussed including you. Now I see how my faith in you shames me.”

“You were going to invite me into your bed? Well, then this is just extra silly. Tell them that, Byakuya!” Isoroku brightened. “Then they’ll know this was just a mistake, that I was just jumping the gun a little. He was up for it! Why didn’t he say?”

Byakuya shook his head, exasperated that he had to explain such things. “Because it doesn’t matter what we discussed, what he _might_ have been willing to do at a later time. It matters what Renji said then. If he said ‘no,’ it means ‘no.’”

Though Byakuya recognized the irony of this moment, it didn’t make it any less true. He might have had to learn this lesson again and again, but, by gods, he was learning it. In fact, the ugliness of this man and his insistence that he’d done nothing wrong made Byakuya truly uncomfortable. He was beginning to truly understand the depths of his own mistakes. 

“Consent,” Byakuya finally spat, hearing Renji’s own phrasing echoed in his words, “Is a _thing_.”

With that Byakuya turned and left Isoroku. As he walked past, he swore he heard Lieutenant Isane’s quiet cheer: “Hear, hear.”

**Author's Note:**

> Surprise! Byakuya's not a total boob!
> 
> Thanks to Josey, of course, for correcting my atrocious grammar and spelling and for always being willing to bounce ideas around.
> 
> Also, it's going to be time for a new series title soon, I think. Thoughts? Title suggestions?


End file.
